IKEA is no stranger to dorm rooms and bachelor pads, which is why it’s no surprise that the company sells a whopping 100 million products every year. However, one number that may surprise you is that the furniture retailer uses nearly one percent of the world’s commercial world supply, according to Pacific Standard. That’s 17.8 million cubic yards of lumber.
While this sounds like quite the toll on the world’s wood supply for items that don’t usually last very long, IKEA is not too bad at making sure its materials are sustainably sourced. 25% of IKEA’s wood is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, and the goal is to increase that to 50% over the next five years. Of course the long-term goal is to obtain 100% of its wood from sustainable forests, but it’s all about baby steps.
IKEA also works with several forestry projects such as WWF and Sow a Seed, and last year, store owners unveiled a bold plan to reach 100% renewable energy by 2020 through the People and Planet Positive Plan. These are all ambitious sustainability plans, especially for a store of its massive size. One thing I would love to see them do is create a recycling program for old, broken, or worn out furniture pieces. I know my $10 particleboard end tables aren’t going to last more than a couple years, so I’d like to see them reused in one way or another.
If you’ve ever bought anything from IKEA, do these numbers surprise you?
Image CC licensed by Jennifer Chernoff: Ikea table and chairs
via Gizmodo
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